Faded Dreams
by Kamarine
Summary: Songfic - 1000 words - FFX-2. Spoilers for end of FFX


A/n – Set after FFX and uses some themes and such from FFX-2, but it does not link with it. It's just something I thought of while listening to the song 1000 words – Koda Kumi, which is from FFX-2. 

I still remember your words. You told me you'd be just a whistle away that if I whistled you'd come running. I whistled until my lungs hurt today. There was no sign of you anywhere. Had you stopped listening for me? Don't you care that I need you now more than ever?

Before we beat Yu Yevon and defeated Sin for the final time, you told us it would be the last time we fought together and that afterwards you'd disappear. You were just a dream of the Fayth. When you told me you'd disappear, my heart felt something new and alien. I felt the desire to do something for my own reason rather than for the people of Spira. I wanted to let Sin live, live so you could stay here with me. I loved you more than I loved the people of Spira. I felt I could them suffer as long as you were beside me. 

But then I looked at your face and at your smile. You wanted to finish this, finish it so my people could be happy. I instantly had felt ashamed but your smiled assured me that it was okay. I was only human after all. 

I fell even more in love with you at that moment. I told you so when you left. But you just smiled at me and put your arms around me. I knew they weren't really there, but I could feel them. I could smell your spicy scent and feel the warmth of your breath. I knew then that you loved me; I felt it, tasted it and desired it. Your love sent shivers down my spine and rippled heat through my stomach. It also ripped my heart to shreds, because I knew you had to go.  You had to leave all you loved. You gave the people of Spira, my people, the ultimate sacrifice. 

I know that you lied to me  
Using just your words to shatter me  
Your words are like a dream  
But dreams could never fool me  
It's not right to me

The girl stood up and shook the wrinkles out of her indigo pleated skirt, the embroidered pink flowers winking from through the folds as she moved. Her sturdy black boots that reached to her knees almost invisible under her skirt crunched the dirt on the wooden floor as she walked out. The bright sun sunk deep into her light brown hair as she brushed a few stray strands out of her mismatched eyes; one was blue and the other was green, a sign of her Al Bhed lineage. She shook out her long sleeves, they were white and reached down to her knees, turning a dusky pink. They were made similary to that of a kimono, but separate from her shirt. She wore a black satin breastband with a white cotton sash that went around her neck and over her breasts to tuck into her wide yellow obi. 

She turned her mismatched gaze to the sun and ran slender fingers through her hair impatiently before walking up the slight hill that led to the abandoned Yevon Temple.

As she entered the temple, she sighed as she remembered how full of life it was and how it used to flourish. Now it was a empty and full of cobwebs, a shadow of it's former self. Just like she was.

She used to be Summoner Yuna, daughter of High Summoner Braska and loved by him. Now she was just Yuna, one of the assorted who eliminated Sin, daughter of a Summoner who once perished needlessly in vain and who loved someone that existed a thousand years ago. The only thing that mattered to her was her memories of Tidus. 

Yuna pushed open the door and walked through the Cloister of Trials until she reached the end room, the room where she first met him. She sat down on the dusty floor and stared up at the door she'd come through from the Chamber of the Fayth to meet him. Tracing a finger in the dirt on the floor, she could almost imagine him there. But she also knew he'd come not for her really, but because Wakka had been the only one he'd known and he'd heard someone was in trouble. She'd been distant to him at first, because he was a stranger. Thing's had changed when she had heard him mention Zanarkand.  

Changing her postion so she could rest her chin on her knees, Yuna wondered what it would be like if she saw him now. Would she still love him as much as her heart told her so or would the image of him that was burnt into her heart be shattered? Would she be distant and wary or would she jump up to be in his arms again and to feel the warmth of his lips, body and breath?

Chewing her bottom lip gently she remembered the time she'd overheard him tell Auron that he wanted to protect her. That night she had slept fruitfully, wondering if he thought she was too weak to protect herself or whether he genuinely cared enough to want it. She'd fallen asleep without coming to a conclusion and didn't think of it again til now. Now of course she realized it was because he did care, he cared a lot more than she'd known until it was too late. 

"Yuna?" Lulu's husky voice called out, startling Yuna from her thoughts.

"I'm in here, Lu." Yuna answered reluctantly as she climbed to her feet and dusted the dirt off of her indigo skirt. Lulu entered the room a mere minute later with a disapproving smile across her dark violet painted lips.

"I knew you'd be in here somewhere." She murmured softly, her artful belt skirt making soft noises as she walked over to Yuna. "It's not healthy to brood here so often." Lulu dusted a bit of dust out of Yuna's hair and steered her out of the Temple. 

When they got outside and back into the bright sunshine, Lulu paused and turned to face Yuna.

"I've decided we should leave Besaid. Rikku want's you to go back with her to Bikanel Island. You can stay with Cid and Rikku for a while and I'll come to if it'll make you feel better." Lulu reached out and tucked some of Yuna's sunstreaked hair behind her ear. "I understand you  miss Tidus, but Yuna he's gone and he's not coming back." She said softly and studied the younger woman's face closely. Yuna glared up at her and turned away.

"You understand nothing Lulu, I love him and I want him to come back so much that he will. He will come back because he loves me." Yuna murmured faintly, her words stinging Lulu.

"I lost Chappu before you even met your dream." She said shortly and looked away from Yuna's turned back. "Rikku will be here tomorrow. If you want to go with her then do so, I wont be able to go with you." She walked past an ashamed Yuna without stopping.

"I'm sorry, Lu." Yuna whispered to herself sincerely. Ever since he'd left her, she'd changed and it wasn't for the better. Sometime's she didn't understand why her friends stood by her. But that's what friends are for, right?

"Don't you worry 'cause I come back"  
I could hear you speaking as  
You walked to battle  
I acted strong  
To hide the pain when I  
Turned back the pages  
Crying out a windy answer  
What if I shed my tears and  
Begged you not to leave?

The aircraft that landed near Besaid Village made Yuna slightly sad, but that emotion wasn't new to her, it was the same airship that they had used to defeat Sin. As she rushed over to it, a short energetic figure disembarked and ran over to her. The girl's blonde locks were shining brightly in the sun as she crashed into Yuna and hugged her tightly.

"Yunie!" Rikku squealed as she let her cousin go and looked around. "Where's Lulu? She said she might come along too." Yuna looked away, shame creeping across her face.

"I don't know." She murmured lightly. "She left early this morning with Wakka." Yuna crossed her arms and idly fiddled with the purple lacing that kept her sleeve's from slipping down her arms. Rikku looked at her with curious emerald eyes but said nothing.

"You are going to come back with me, right Yunie?" She asked tentavly. "We haven't spent much time together recently." Rikku trailed off and smiled slightly. "You still haven't seen our new Home yet either. We've moved off the Island, there were too many memories there." Rikku paused, noticing the faraway look in Yuna's gaze and sighed. "Never mind." She mumbled and headed back to the airship. Yuna automatically followed her, her leather incased feet moving practically on her own accord. 

On the airship, Yuna hesitantly approached her uncle.

"Uncle Cid." She started. "Is it possible that we could stop in Luca first?" Cid eyed his niece carefully and exchanged a glance with Rikku and nodded.

"It's fine." He said.

In Luca, Yuna told a curious Rikku to stay put and that she would be back in an hour.

Flicking through racks of clothes, Yuna chewed her lip thoughtfully. She'd mourned Tidus for so long that she was starting to alienate her friends. She needed to move on and live again. She knew she'd probably never find someone who'd she would love so much again, but that didn't matter to her. She just wanted to be happy with her friends.

She pulled a bunch of coathangers off the rack and threw them over her shoulder briskly before flicking through some more. Pausing, she took a step back and held up one particular item of clothing that appealed to her greatly. Across the front of it was the symbol Tidus used to have on his pants and on his necklace. Yuna tucked it under her arm and walked down the next aisle. Grabbing a pair of sturdy knee high lace ups in her size, Yuna grinned grimly to herself and strode down the accessories aisle, grabbing this and that. She also made sure to grab a pair of scissors.

Paying for her chosen items, she exited the shops and snuck into an empty blitzball changing room. 

Shaking out a long blue and white skirt that reminded Yuna of the waves, she set her scissors on to it and started to chop it up. 

When she was finished, she dressed quickly and stared at herself in one of the mirrors.

Her small feet and calves were encased in black leather that was laced up right to her knees. The rest of her slim legs were left bare except for a pair of tiny blue denim like shorts. Hanging over her left hip and tied at her right hip with a sturdy knot was the blue and white skirt Yuna had chopped up. It now hung over one side od her body, floating from left hip to left ankle and almost covering the whole leg when still. Her shirt was white and had a dusky pink hood that laid flat on Yuna's back. On the front of it between her breasts was a seethrough panel with Tidus' blitzball symbol embroidered on it. The bottom of the shirt had a bit of pink lace coming from under it. The only straps on the shirt was the one that went around behind Yuna's neck and under the pink hood. For a final touch yellow laced up armbands were on each upperarm and a black one on her right wrist.

Picking up the scissors, Yuna started to cut her hair. She feathered the edges so they stuck out cutely and made her look less innocent and more mature.

Gathering up her old clothes in her arms, Yuna dumped them in a bin and strode out. She headed for the Weaponsmith down the road from the Blitz Stadium. 

It was there she picked up her first weapon, a pair of twin pistols that she stuck in a yellow belt that was slung across her hips. 

Grinning, she spun in a circle before her surprised uncle and cousin.

"What do you think?" She said cheerfully. Rikku opened her mouth to speak but closed it again, not finding the right words. A mature and husky voice from behind her spoke up instead. 

"I think it's well overdue." Yuna whirled to see a smiling Lulu behind her. Yuna instantly hugged the older woman.

"I'm sorry Lulu, I really am." She said sincerely as Lulu cradled her face in her thin white hands.

"I know." She murmured softly and let her go. "But I do think your shorts are a little short." She grinned as Cid snorted his distaste at Yuna's shorts.

"Let's go!" Yuna said brightly mimicking the ever energetic Rikku.

But now I'm not afraid to do  
What's in my heart  
  
Those thousand words  
Have never been spoken  
So far away  
I'm sending them to you wherever you are  
Suspended on shiny wings  
Those thousand words  
Have never been spoken  
They'll treasure you  
Make you no longer dare seem  
So far away  
And hold you forever

Yuna fired off two shots, laughing giddily as they wizzed harmlessly past the cans. 

"You missed again Yunie!" Rikku laughed, making Yuna shrug, aim and fire again. This time one of the bullets hit the can square in the middle, propelling it off the fence it was sitting on.

"Woo!" Yuna cried and jumped up and down. Lulu uncrossed her arms and rolled her eyes good naturedly.

"One can doesn't make you a pro." She giggled, gesturing to the other three cans perched on the wooden fence. Yuna made a face and poked her tongue out at the dark haired woman. 

Aiming her guns with a renewed confidence she fired three consecutive shots, each one hitting one of the remaining cans. Her days of practise were starting to pay off.

Shoving her guns into the holsters hanging off her yellow belt slung across her hips, she wandered over to where Lulu and Rikku were standing with a grin.

"Not too bad. I'll improve with practise." She murmured wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. Even in the chilly Macalanian atmosphere she still worked up a sweat whenever she trained. "Speaking of training, why don't we go into the woods and practise on some live targets?" Yuna suggested lightly. Rikku bounced and stuck her arm up with enthusiasm.

"Yeah!" She said brightly and adjusted her Godhand, checking its battle readiness. Lulu raised a slender eyebrow in thought but nodded reluctantly.

"If you think you are ready, then sure." She said gravely. 

They set out through the Macalanian Forest, killing all sorts of fiends. Yuna missed a fair amount of shots, but Rikku and Lulu were adept and able to support her in battle. 

By the time they'd reached the end of the woods, Yuna's shot was much improved. 

"I know you." A voice murmured to the left of Yuna. Yuna swung around and aimed her guns, not meaning to shoot, but to practise her aim. "Ill admit you didn't strike me as the type to point such weapons at strangers then." The voice drawled as Yuna took in the leather clad female infront of her. 

"Paine!" Rikku said cheerfully and saluted the other girl brightly. Paine just raised a slender brown eyebrow and turned her gaze back to Yuna.

"I always wanted to ask you. That day at the Blitzball Stadium in Luca, you said never forget dreams that have faded. I didn't understand it." She drawled thoughtfully. "You were a summoner with no family and your only dream was to defeat Sin and you did. But you emotionally told the population to never forget dreams that had faded. Even I believed that your dreams had faded when you had supposedly fulfilled them." Paine pointed out, her gloved fingers caressing the hilt of her gleaming blade. Yuna looked away, caught off guard by her boldness.

"Tidus was a dream of the Fayth." Lulu spoke up softly, digging her violet fingernails into her stuffed moogle. "When we killed Sin, we woke the Fayth and they stopped dreaming." 

Yuna stuck her guns into their holsters and looked up at Paine unwaveringly.

"I loved him, and he faded like a dream. And when he faded, so did my dreams of happiness and love." She murmured simply. "Even though Ive changed and become almost a different person, his presence still lingers. Its like a never ending dream, but it's almost a nightmare because he's not here." Paine looked at her silently for a long moment and stuck out a gloved hand.

"I'm Paine." She said softly. Yuna took the hand in her own and shook it firmly.

"I'm Yuna." She replied and smiled.

That dream isn't over yet  
I pretend and say, "I can't forget"  
I still live in my day  
You've been there with me all the way  
It's not right of me  
  
"Don't you worry 'cause I'll write to you"  
I could see you speaking as  
You looked away  
I acted strong  
To hide the love when I  
Turned back the pages  
Anger might've been the answer  
But if I shook my head and said  
That I can't wait

Now my journey continues on, without you. It doesn't mean I love you any less. It just means I can live without you and be happy. Not happy that your not here, happy that I love you and have my memories of you. My thoughts Ill send to you constantly aswell as my love. 

A thousand words I send to you, words of love, heartache and misery. Words of happiness, laughter and goodtimes. 

I don't know where you are, how far away or how close you are, but I know that a part of you remains in my heart. A part of you that proves you were more than anothers dream. And in my heart, I embrace you forever..

Those thousand words  
Have never been spoken  
So far away  
I'm sending them to you wherever you are  
Suspended on shiny wings  
Those thousands words  
Have never been spoken  
They'll treasure you  
Make you no longer dare seem  
So far away  
And hold you forever

"The people and the friends we have lost, or the dreams that have faded... Never forget them."


End file.
